Matthew 11:21
"Woe to you, Chorazin! Woe to you, Bethsaida! For if the miracles that were performed in you had been performed in Tyre and Sidon, they would have repented long ago in sackcloth and ashes.
Woe to you, Chorazin!
The word "woe" is a strong expression of grief or denunciation. In Greek, it is "ouai," which conveys a deep lamentation or impending judgment. Chorazin was a town near Capernaum, and its mention here highlights its unrepentant nature despite witnessing Jesus' miracles. This serves as a warning to those who witness God's work yet remain unchanged.

Woe to you, Bethsaida!
Bethsaida, like Chorazin, was a town where Jesus performed many miracles. The repetition of "woe" emphasizes the seriousness of their spiritual condition. Bethsaida was the hometown of several apostles, yet it failed to recognize the significance of Jesus' works. This underscores the theme of accountability for those who have been given much revelation.

For if the miracles that were performed in you
The Greek word for "miracles" is "dynamis," indicating acts of power. Jesus' miracles were not just displays of power but signs pointing to His divine authority and the coming of God's kingdom. The towns of Chorazin and Bethsaida had the privilege of witnessing these signs, which should have led them to repentance.

had been performed in Tyre and Sidon
Tyre and Sidon were ancient Phoenician cities known for their wealth and paganism. Historically, they were often condemned by the prophets for their idolatry and arrogance (e.g., Ezekiel 28). By comparing Chorazin and Bethsaida to these Gentile cities, Jesus highlights the greater culpability of those who have direct exposure to His ministry.

they would have repented long ago
Repentance, or "metanoia" in Greek, means a change of mind and heart. Jesus suggests that even these historically pagan cities would have turned from their ways if they had witnessed the same miracles. This comparison serves as a rebuke to the Jewish towns that failed to respond to Jesus' message.

in sackcloth and ashes
Sackcloth and ashes were traditional symbols of mourning and repentance in Jewish culture. They represent humility and a recognition of one's sinfulness before God. The imagery here is powerful, illustrating the depth of repentance that Jesus expected from those who witnessed His works. It calls believers to a genuine and heartfelt response to God's revelation.

Persons / Places / Events
1. Chorazin
A town in Galilee where Jesus performed many miracles. Despite witnessing these miracles, the people did not repent.

2. Bethsaida
Another Galilean town, known as the hometown of some of Jesus' disciples. Like Chorazin, it saw many of Jesus' works but remained unrepentant.

3. Tyre and Sidon
Ancient Phoenician cities known for their wealth and pagan practices. Jesus uses them as a comparison to highlight the unrepentance of Chorazin and Bethsaida.

4. Miracles
Supernatural acts performed by Jesus to demonstrate His divine authority and to call people to repentance.

5. Repentance in Sackcloth and Ashes
A traditional Jewish expression of mourning and repentance, symbolizing humility and a desire to turn from sin.
Teaching Points
The Responsibility of Witnessing Miracles
Witnessing God's power through miracles brings a responsibility to respond in faith and repentance. Ignoring such signs leads to greater accountability.

The Danger of Spiritual Apathy
Familiarity with the divine can breed complacency. We must guard against becoming indifferent to God's work in our lives.

Repentance as a Heartfelt Response
True repentance involves a change of heart and actions, symbolized by the biblical practice of wearing sackcloth and ashes.

Comparative Accountability
Jesus' comparison of Chorazin and Bethsaida to Tyre and Sidon highlights that greater revelation brings greater responsibility.

The Urgency of Repentance
The call to repentance is urgent and should not be delayed. We must respond to God's call with sincerity and immediacy.
Bible Study Questions
1. What does the response of Chorazin and Bethsaida to Jesus' miracles teach us about the human heart's tendency towards spiritual apathy?

2. How can we ensure that we do not become complacent in our faith, especially when we regularly witness God's work in our lives?

3. In what ways can the example of Tyre and Sidon serve as a warning for us today regarding the consequences of unrepentance?

4. How does the concept of repentance in sackcloth and ashes apply to our modern context? What are practical ways we can demonstrate genuine repentance?

5. Reflect on a time when you witnessed God's power or presence. How did you respond, and what steps can you take to deepen your response to God's work in your life?
Connections to Other Scriptures
Luke 10:13-14
This passage parallels Matthew 11:21, emphasizing the accountability of those who witness Jesus' works yet remain unrepentant.

Isaiah 23
This chapter prophesies the downfall of Tyre, illustrating the consequences of pride and unrepentance, which can be related to the warnings given to Chorazin and Bethsaida.

Jonah 3:5-6
The people of Nineveh repented in sackcloth and ashes at Jonah's preaching, contrasting with the unrepentance of Chorazin and Bethsaida despite witnessing greater miracles.
The Forearming Against a Foreseen UnbeliefP.C. Barker Matthew 11:2-30
The Judgment of GodJ.A. Macdonald Matthew 11:16-24
A Lament Over Wasted PrivilegesW.F. Adeney Matthew 11:20-24
Judgment on CapernaumMcCheyne.Matthew 11:20-24
The Damnation Under the Gospel More Intolerable than that of SodomM. Barker, M. A., H. Melvill, M. A.Matthew 11:20-24
The Danger of Impenitence Where the Gospel is PreachedJ. Tillotson, D. D.Matthew 11:20-24
The Sentence of ChorazinC. Girdlestone, M. A.Matthew 11:20-24
The Sin and Danger of Abusing Religious PrivilegesE. Cooper.Matthew 11:20-24
The Woe of CapernaumJ. R. Woodford, M. A.Matthew 11:20-24
Jesus Rejected by the Wise, But Owned by Babes and the FatherMarcus Dods Matthew 11:20-30
People
Elias, Elijah, Jesus, John
Places
Bethsaida, Capernaum, Chorazin, Galilee, Sidon, Sodom, Tyre
Topics
Ago, Ashes, Bethsaida, Chorazin, Korazin, Mighty, Miracles, Performed, Repented, Sackcloth, Sidon, Tyre, Woe, Works
Dictionary of Bible Themes
Matthew 11:21

     1670   symbols
     5865   gestures
     6742   sackcloth and ashes

Matthew 11:20-21

     2351   Christ, miracles

Matthew 11:20-22

     1418   miracles, responses
     9250   woe

Matthew 11:20-24

     2009   Christ, anger of
     5052   responsibility, to God
     9240   last judgment
     9513   hell, as incentive to action

Matthew 11:21-23

     8800   prejudice

Matthew 11:21-24

     6750   sin-bearer

Library
The Friend of Publicans and Sinners
'The Son of Man came eating and drinking, and they say, Behold a man gluttonous, and a winebibber, a friend of publicans and sinners. But wisdom is justified of her children,'--MATT. xi. 19. Jesus very seldom took notice of His enemies' slanders. 'When He was reviled He reviled not again.' If ever He did, it was for the sake of those whom it harmed to distort His beauty. Thus, here He speaks, without the slightest trace of irritation, of the capricious inconsistency of condemning Himself and John
Alexander Maclaren—Expositions of Holy Scripture

Sodom, Capernaum, Manchester
'Then began He to upbraid the cities wherein most of His mighty works were done, because they repented not.' --MATT. xi. 20. These words, and the woes which they introduce, are found in another connection in Luke's Gospel. He attaches them to his report of the mission of the seventy disciples. Matthew here introduces them in an order which seems not to depend upon time, but upon identity of subject. It is his method in his Gospel to group together similar events, as we have it exemplified, for instance,
Alexander Maclaren—Expositions of Holy Scripture

Christ's Strange Thanksgiving
'I thank Thee, O Father, Lord of heaven and earth, because Thou hast hid these things from the wise and prudent, and hast revealed them unto babes.' --MATT. xi. 25. When Jesus was about to cure one dumb man, He lifted up His eyes to heaven and sighed. Sorrow filled His soul in the act of working deliverance. The thought of the depth of the miseries He had come to heal, and of the ocean of them which He was then diminishing but by one poor drop, saddened Him. When Jesus thought of the woes that had
Alexander Maclaren—Expositions of Holy Scripture

John's Doubts of Jesus, and Jesus' Praise of John
'Now when John had heard in the prison the works of Christ, he sent two of his disciples, 3. And said unto Him, Art Thou He that should come, or do we look for another? 4. Jesus answered and said unto them, Go and shew John again those things which ye do hear and see: 5. The blind receive their sight, and the lame walk, the lepers are cleansed, and the deaf hear, the dead are raised up, and the poor have the gospel preached to them. 6. And blessed is he, whosoever shall not be offended in Me. 7.
Alexander Maclaren—Expositions of Holy Scripture

The Rest Giver
'Come unto Me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. 29. Take My yoke upon you, and learn of Me; for I am meek and lowly in heart: and ye shall find rest unto your souls.'--MATT. xi. 28, 29. One does not know whether tenderness or majesty is predominant in these wonderful words. A divine penetration into man's true condition, and a divine pity, are expressed in them. Jesus looks with clearsighted compassion into the inmost history of all hearts, and sees the toil and the
Alexander Maclaren—Expositions of Holy Scripture

Rest for the Weary
Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. W hich shall we admire most -- the majesty, or the grace, conspicuous in this invitation? How soon would the greatest earthly monarch be impoverished, and his treasures utterly exhausted, if all, that are poor and miserable, had encouragement to apply freely to him, with a promise of relief, fully answerable to their wants and wishes! But the riches of Christ are unsearchable and inexhaustible. If millions and millions
John Newton—Messiah Vol. 1

Messiah's Easy Yoke
Take my yoke upon you, and learn of me; for I am meek and lowly in heart: and ye shall find rest unto your souls. For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light. T hough the influence of education and example, may dispose us to acknowledge the Gospel to be a revelation from God; it can only be rightly understood, or duly prized, by those persons who feel themselves in the circumstances of distress, which it is designed to relieve. No Israelite would think of fleeing to a city of refuge (Joshua 20:2.
John Newton—Messiah Vol. 1

The Yoke of Christ.
"Take My yoke upon you, and learn of Me, for I am meek and lowly in heart, and ye shall find rest unto your souls; for My yoke is easy, and My burden is light."--Matt. xi. 29, 30. These words, which are brought before us in the Gospel of to-day's festival[1], are also found in the address made to us upon Ash Wednesday, in which we are told that if we "return unto Him who is the merciful Receiver of all true penitent sinners, if we will take His easy yoke and light burden upon us, to follow Him
John Henry Newman—Parochial and Plain Sermons, Vol. VII

On the Words of the Gospel, Matt. xi. 2, "Now when John Heard in the Prison the Works of the Christ, He Sent by his Disciples,
1. The lesson of the Holy Gospel has set before us a question touching John the Baptist. May the Lord assist me to resolve it to you, as He hath resolved it to us. John was commended, as ye have heard, by the testimony of Christ, and in such terms commended, as that there had not risen a greater among those who were born of women. But a greater than he had been born of a Virgin. How much greater? Let the herald himself declare, how great the difference is between himself and his Judge, whose herald
Saint Augustine—sermons on selected lessons of the new testament

On the Words of the Gospel, Matt. xi. 25, "I Thank Thee, O Father, Lord of Heaven and Earth, that Thou Didst Hide These Things From
1. When the Holy Gospel was being read, we heard that the Lord Jesus exulted in Spirit, and said, "I confess to Thee, O Father, Lord of heaven and earth, for that Thou hast hid these things from the wise and prudent, and hast revealed them unto babes." [2252] Thus much to begin [2253] with, we find before we pass on further, if we consider the words of the Lord with due attention, with diligence, and above all with piety, that we ought not invariably to understand when we read of "confession" in
Saint Augustine—sermons on selected lessons of the new testament

Again on the Words of the Gospel, Matt. xi. 25, "I Thank Thee, O Father, Lord of Heaven and Earth," Etc.
1. We have heard the Son of God saying, "I confess to Thee, O Father, Lord of heaven and earth." What doth he confess to Him? Wherein doth he praise Him? "Because Thou hast hid these things from the wise and prudent, and hast revealed them unto babes." [2288] Who are the "wise and prudent"? Who the "babes"? What hath He hid from the wise and prudent, and revealed unto babes? By the "wise and prudent," He signifieth those of whom St. Paul speaks; "Where is the wise? where is the scribe? where is the
Saint Augustine—sermons on selected lessons of the new testament

Again on the Words of the Gospel, Matt. xi. 28, "Come unto Me, all Ye that Labour and are Heavy Laden, and I Will Give You
1. It seems strange to some, Brethren, when they hear the Lord say, "Come unto Me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will refresh you. Take my yoke upon you and learn of Me, for I am meek and lowly in heart, and ye shall find rest unto your souls. For My yoke is easy and My burden is light." [2323] And they consider that they who have fearlessly bowed their necks to this yoke, and have with much submission taken this burden upon their shoulders, are tossed about and exercised by so great
Saint Augustine—sermons on selected lessons of the new testament

The Sinner's Friend
"Savior of sinners they proclaim, Sinners of whom the chief I am." What the invidious Jews said in bitter spleen, has been turned by the Holy Spirit to the most gracious account. Where they poured out vials of hate, odours of sacred incense arise. Troubled consciences have found a sweet balm in the very sound. Jesus, "the friend of publicans and sinners," has proved himself friendly to them, and they have become friends with him; so completely has he justified the very name which his enemies gave
Charles Haddon Spurgeon—Spurgeon's Sermons Volume 10: 1864

Rest, Rest
We will, this morning, if we can, conduct you into the inner chambers of out text, place its words under the microscope, and peer into the recesses of each sentence. We only wish our microscope were of a greater magnifying power, and our ability to expound the text more complete; for there are mines of instruction here. Superficially read, this royal promise has cheered and encouraged tens of thousands, but there is a wealth in it which the diligent digger and miner shall alone discover. Its shallows
Charles Haddon Spurgeon—Spurgeon's Sermons Volume 17: 1871

Holy violence
"But," says one, "do you wish us to understand, that if a man is to be saved he must use violence and vehement earnestness in order to obtain salvation?" I do, most assuredly; that is the doctrine of the text. "But," says one, "I thought it was all the work of God." So it is, from first to last. But when God has begun the work in the soul, the constant effect of God's work in us is to set us working; and where God's Spirit is really striving with us, we shall begin to strive too. This is just a test
Charles Haddon Spurgeon—Spurgeon's Sermons Volume 5: 1859

The Meek and Lowly One
I. First, then, I am to consider THE FIRST QUALITY WHICH JESUS CHRIST CLAIMS. He declares that he is "MEEK." Christ is no egotist; he takes no praise to himself. If ever he utters a word in self-commendation, it is not with that object; it is with another design, namely that he may entice souls to come to him. Here, in order to exhibit this meekness, I shall have to speak of him in several ways. 1. First, Christ is meek, as opposed to the ferocity of spirit manifested by zealots and bigots. Take,
Charles Haddon Spurgeon—Spurgeon's Sermons Volume 5: 1859

Powerful Persuasives
I HAVE preached to you, dear friends, several times from the words, "Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest." There is such sweetness in the precept, such solace in the promise, that I could fain hope to preach from it many times more. But I have no intention just now to repeat what I have said in any former discourse, or to follow the same vein of thought that we have previously explored. This kindly and gracious invitation needs only to be held up in different
Charles Haddon Spurgeon—Spurgeon's Sermons Volume 62: 1916

Sermon for the Sixth Sunday after Epiphany
(From the Gospel for St. Matthias'-day, 24th February) Of the proper marks of true humility. Matt. xi. 29.--"Learn of Me, for I am meek and lowly in heart." CHRIST, our blessed Lord, the true master and teacher of all art and virtue, and a pattern of all perfection, when He came down from Heaven to instruct us poor ignorant men, did not see fit to make use of great subtleties, or mysterious and ingenious statements of truth; but in short, plain, simple words He delivered to us a maxim, and gave us
Susannah Winkworth—The History and Life of the Reverend Doctor John Tauler

Sermon for the Third Sunday in Advent
(From the Gospel for the day) How that we must wholly come out from ourselves, that we may go into the wilderness and behold God. Matt. xi. 7.--"What went ye out into the wilderness for to see?" OUR Lord Jesus Christ said unto the Jews, "What went ye out into the wilderness for to see? A reed shaken with the wind?" In these words let us consider three things: First, the going out; secondly, the wilderness; thirdly, what we are to see there. First, let us consider the going out. This blessed going
Susannah Winkworth—The History and Life of the Reverend Doctor John Tauler

Sixth Day. Thankfulness.
"I thank Thee, O Father, Lord of heaven and earth."--Matt. xi. 25. A thankful spirit pervaded the entire life of Jesus, and surrounded with a heavenly halo His otherwise darkened path. In moments we least expect to find it, this beauteous ray breaks through the gloom. In instituting the memorial of His death, He "gave thanks!" Even in crossing the Kedron to Gethsemane, "He sang an hymn!" We know in seasons of deep sorrow and trial that every thing wears a gloomy aspect. Dumb Nature herself to
John R. Macduff—The Mind of Jesus

Fifth Day. Meekness.
"I am meek and lowly in heart."--Matt. xi. 29. There is often a beautiful blending of majesty and humility, magnanimity and lowliness, in great minds. The mightiest and holiest of all Beings that ever trod our world was the meekest of all. The Ancient of Days was as the "infant of days." He who had listened to nothing but angel-melodies from all eternity, found, while on earth, melody in the lispings of an infant's voice, or in an outcast's tears! No wonder an innocent lamb was His emblem, or
John R. Macduff—The Mind of Jesus

"I Will Give You Rest. "
A COMMUNION ADDRESS AT MENTONE. "I will give you rest."--Matthew xi. 28. "I WILL GIVE YOU REST." WE have a thousand times considered these words as an encouragement to the labouring and the laden; and we may, therefore, have failed to read them as a promise to ourselves. But, beloved friends, we have come to Jesus, and therefore He stands engaged to fufil this priceless pledge to us. We may now enjoy the promise; for we have obeyed the precept. The faithful and true Witness, whose word is truth,
Charles Hadden Spurgeon—Till He Come

A Devout Exhortation to the Holy Communion the Voice of Christ
Come unto Me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will refresh you,(1) saith the Lord. The bread that I will give is My flesh which I give for the life of the world.(2) Take, eat: this is My Body, which is given for you; this do in remembrance of Me.(3) He that eateth My flesh and drinketh My blood dwelleth in Me and I in him. The words that I speak unto you, they are spirit, and they are life.(4) (1) Matthew xi. 28 (2) John vi. 51. (3) Matthew xxi. 26; Luke xxii. 19. (4) John vi.
Thomas A Kempis—Imitation of Christ

The Baptist's Inquiry and Jesus' Discourse Suggested Thereby.
(Galilee.) ^A Matt. XI. 2-30; ^C Luke VII. 18-35. ^c 18 And the disciples of John told him of all these things. ^a 2 Now when John had heard in the prison the works of Christ, he sent by his disciples ^c 19 And John calling unto him two of his disciples sent them unto the Lord [John had been cast into prison about December, a.d. 27, and it was now after the Passover, possibly in May or June, a.d. 28. Herod Antipas had cast John into prison because John had reproved him for taking his brother's wife.
J. W. McGarvey—The Four-Fold Gospel

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